HOUSING chiefs have given a Sheffield couple and their two young children 28 days to leave their council house after ruling against them in a dispute over whether they could inherit the tenancy.

Terence Boot, aged 24, said his grandfather, George Janes, who died in June, wanted him to have the three-bedroom house on Stradbroke Way, Stradbroke.

Mr Boot moved in with his partner, Laura Parker, aged 23, and their two young children, Grace, aged two and Alex, one.

Mr Boot said his grandfather, a retired driver aged 76, had not been able to fill an application to transfer the tenancy because he could not leave his home due to ill health.

Mr Boot, who works for timber firm Arnold Laver, said: “I had lived at the property on a part-time basis for five years while helping to look after my granddad as his condition deteriorated, after the death of my grandmother, Lillian.

“We moved in during the summer, having previously lived at my partner’s home in Dronfield, which was unsuitable because of damp. Sheffield Homes has now told us we are not entitled to the house and have given us 28 days to leave.”

But Sheffield Homes officials will not change their mind. The housing management company said Mr Boot and his family were not entitled to the house because he needed to have lived in it on a permanent basis before Mr Janes’ death.

Paul Voyse, area manager for Sheffield Homes, said: “The law states that he would need to have lived in the property for 12 months prior to his grandfather’s death to take on the tenancy.

“Mr Boot has said that this isn’t the case. We have no records of his grandfather making a request for tenancy to be assigned to his grandson.

“We are sympathetic to Mr Boot and his family’s position and have advised him to contact the Housing Solutions team, who will be able to assist him with applying for priority housing.”